I perked up because DeeAnna is one of the world's experts on issues related to delivering online counseling. Anyway, she was talking about the importance of encrypted e-mail to maintain confidentiality, and until that moment, I thought you only needed encrypted mail if you worked for the CIA, or your name was Obama, or you lived inside "The Matrix".

But I soon learned that according to the people at Hush, a typical clear text e-mail message is no more secure than a holiday postcard sent through the public postal system. Actually less - it seems any number of people can hijack your e-mail account.

Hushmail, the virtual Alcatraz of e-mail, is a Web-based service that lets you send and receive email in security. Hushmail messages, and their attachments, are encrypted using Open PGP standard algorithms. (Whatever that means.) These algorithms, combined with Hushmail's unique key management system, offer users powerful email security.

Hushmail's encryption works automatically, requiring no specialized computer skills or knowledge (whew!). Encrypting a message is as simple as clicking a mouse. And it's FREE!